Collection of Hearts
by Kamen Rider Super-Fan
Summary: The Ganglars steal the Lupin Collection, and now the world will soon face ruin. Two teams, the Phantom Thieves and the Police, now rise up against against the upcoming ruin and save the world, as they soon find themselves in a clash between their ideal justice. Now then, for whatever story they share with one-another, which side are you on? (Note: May need to re-write summary.)
1. Chapter 1

**I don't own Persona 5 or Super Sentai. Enjoy.**

* * *

"Wake him up!"

***SPLASH***

Feeling the water doused on his head, a teenage boy was slowly opening his eyes. However, he noticed that his vision was really blurry for some reason, and it was hard to make out what he was seeing in front of him. Not to mention that his head was basically switching between light and heavy.

Fortunately, and unfortunately for him, his vision lit up as he can see everything crystal clear. He appears to be in an underground room, with a door, security camera attached to a certain angle on the ceiling, and three men in suits. The one in front of him was actually giving a glare, that was literally saying he wants to beat him up for no apparent reason and swing his pride around.

"No dozing off." the leading man said, taking a first step in doing so.

Despite having no idea what's going on, the young man saw it, he attempted to make a move but soon realized that his hands were cuffed at the back of his hands. Why is he like this and more importantly, what did he do to deserve this?

"You still don't get it, do you?" the officer said, raising his foot. "Give it up!" He kicks the teen's the stomach, knocking him down to the cold hard floor and off his chair.

The young man coughed and gagged a little when he felt it. What the hell was his problem!?

"Come on, cooperate with us here." the man said, now stepping on the teen's head. From the sound of his voice, he was obviously enjoying beating him down. "Or what, do you want another shot you junkie?"

_'…Shot…?'_ the teen thought, looking at the man with a hateful glare before drifting his eyes to a syringe…Wait, was he drugged? He can still feel some pain even before being put in this position, especially in his neck. So these guys were actually drugging him. But for what?

Despite the blurriness in his eyes going back and forward due to the drug's effect, in between he noticed the camera flashing red. Apparently, the thuggish man noticed the look in his eye.

"Huh? What about the camera? Are you thinking it can be used as video evidence?" the man asked, crouching down and pulling the teen's hair rather hard.

"What do you mean…?" the teen asked, trying to speak up.

"You still haven't figured it out?" the man scoffed, but stood up while he not subtly held a sadistic grin. "There are no laws here that will protect criminals like you!" he declared, kicking the teenager hard in the gut. Clearly, this made him cough so hard his lungs may as well start going out from his throat.

Unaware to anyone though, the door opened up and closed, revealing another man. But he was wearing a black and red police jumpsuit, or a type of SWAT uniform, unlike the others.

While closing the door, the thuggish man noticed the guy in the jumpsuit, but he hardly paid any attention as he grabbed a clipboard from his "grunt" and looked at the list.

"Obstruction of justice, blackmail, defamation, possession of weapons… Manslaughter too, huh? Talk about the works." the man said, fighting the urge to make a sadistic grin. "To think they were all led by a punk like this one here. And you seemed to be enjoying every second of it… Huh?"

_'I was… Enjoying it…?'_ the teen thought. When he tried to remember it, his head suddenly felt like a baseball and now, everything's all hazy. Dammit, why can't he remember it?

The SWAT man clenched his fist, clearly not enjoying this and he knows where this is going.

"You should know your place, runt." the man said, then gestured his goons to uncuff him. Once they did so, the teen massaged his wrists from the tightness before being presented the clipboard.

"Sign here. It's a confession under your name."

Not wanting to do what he says, maybe out of reflex, the teen shoved it away.

"I see. I need your hand to sign this but… I don't care if you lose a leg!" the man actually stomped on the teen's knee.

"G-GAAAAH!"

Then, all of a sudden, the man in the SWAT uniform grabbed the thuggish man's arm from behind, put his palm underneath his elbow and actually flipped him.

"W-What!?"

"Are you stupid? What the hell is wrong with you…? Even if we did get the answers we needed, you can't put him behind bars now." he said, glaring at him.

"What the hell are you talking about?" the man asked, clearly upset that his fun was ruined.

"Criminal Procedure Code of Japan, Article 319. Testimonies and confessions gained through torture, or any kind of force and intimidation are useless as evidence." the man scolded.

"Aw come on Akamine, you know what crimes this punk did. Why should we-"

"What I'm saying is that you should go back to police academy or go to the countryside where there's less of this so-called "fun" for you. Besides, I've seen monkeys that are smarter than you."

After that insult, the man tried to run up with a damaged pride and short temper at this Akamine person.

"Bastard!"

However as soon as he was about to land a punch, the SWAT man actually twirled before hooking his arm onto the thuggish man's arm. Once grabbing onto his wrists, the SWAT man bent his arm backwards, making a crack sound before kicking his ankle to the ground.

"Look, I'm being a nice guy here. So let me and my friend do the work. Also, I suggest you me do the recommendation of transferring you to the countryside. Unless…" the SWAT man bent down with a glare, actually unnerving the man with a whisper, "You would rather have me show you what I can do to your eyes with those leftover drugs in your pocket…"

Feeling completely unnerved, and having his pride and ego more damaged, the man stayed silent as of this moment.

"Now get the hell out of my sight!" the SWAT man demanded, glaring at the three men. He was already upset that they were literally abusing the boy, so this was their last chance to leave this place completely before he gives them a beat down.

The three men grimaced as they wordlessly left the room, although one of them shot the duo a glare before leaving. Shortly after, there were male voices coming from the other side of the door. Most likely, it had to be the police detective and guard outside speaking with them. But that didn't matter at the moment, the SWAT man had to check and see if the kid was alright.

"Are you okay?" he asked the young man, to which he grunted in response. The SWAT man let out an inaudible growl, trying his best to contain his anger towards the so-called investigators from earlier. Aware of the men outside, he leans and whispers to the boy, "I'm really sorry you had go through that. If I had arrived sooner, you wouldn't have gotten hurt."

The young man was confused by his actions, but he was thankful nonetheless. His memory was still a tad bit hazy though he can feel some of it starting to come back.

"Are you still with me?" the SWAT man asked. The teen had replied with a weak nod. "Good. But just to make sure, can you remember what your name is...?" Due to the drug abuse, he was afraid the teen had been injected to the point where he couldn't remember his own name. Thankfully, that wasn't the case…

"...Akira...Kurusu," he weakly replies.

Giving a nod, the SWAT man gives him the pen and clipboard he picked up earlier. As much as he wants to let Akira rest to regain his bearings, he unfortunately was on a time restraint. So after he signs, he can begin the interrogation properly.

The young man, Akira Kurusu, wordlessly takes the pen and clipboard beginning to sign it. As he did that, the SWAT man pulls out his phone to message his friends to bring some ice packs to help reduce the boy's swollen bruises.

* * *

Outside of the interrogation room, a woman in her twenties brisk through the hallway. Her long gray hair asymmetrically parts the right side, as it was decorated with dark hair clips above the ear. Her business suit is black with a turtleneck underneath, along with wearing a pair of earrings, and necklace with the section sign. Around her left shoulder is a black case.

She approaches the interrogation room door only to be stopped by the police detective and guard.

"Excuse me, but this area's off-"

"I'm Niijima from the Public Prosecutor's Office." she interjected.

"The Prosecutor's Office? What business do you have here?" he irritably asks, obviously not wanting her presence here.

"Just let me through; it's urgent. There's something I need to confirm with the suspect." Niijima said.

"Niijima-san, I believe this case is no longer in your jurisdiction. Besides..." the detective was about to say something before another detective walked in.

"Are you Prosecutor Sae Niijima?" the older detective asked, to which she replied with a nod. "There's a call from your director. Hurry and get it over with. To be frank, you're being an inconvenience."

The prosecutor, Sae Niijima, refrained from scowling lest she wants to make trouble for herself. She could let the unwanted attention go by as long as she can talk to the suspect. Her phone begins to vibrate, making her inwardly sigh in irritation, before taking it out and putting it against her ear.

From the other line, an older man's voice sighs obviously expecting this, 'I thought I ordered you to stand by.' It was the SIU Director.

"I'm responsible for this case, yet I'm not even being allowed an interrogation!?" she frowned.

'I'm calling because I knew you'd bring it up.'

"I will not be convinced unless I confirm it for myself. This is MY case." she told him.

Again, the SIU Direction sighs, "Good luck to you then. I won't be expecting much though…"

With that, she hangs up putting the phone back in her pocket.

"Ah, Prosecutor. I forgot to mention something important." the older detective said. "Your time will be cut short. We can't permit you to talk with him for long." Sae let out a defeated sigh, knowing something like this would happen. "It's for your own sake. His methods are unknown. After all, we don't even know if it's safe to simply meet and speak with him. Especially with a GSPO member in there with him, so a fight may breakout if he tries to do anything."

"What...? A member of the GSPO is in there with him?" she widened her eyes.

"Did you forget, Niijima-san? They were also working on this case, as well."

_'Of course I knew that.'_ she narrowed her eyes, stealing a quick glance at the door. _'So he must be in there, too.'_ Looking back at the older detective she spoke, "...I understand."

With that, she turned on her heel, and walked towards the interrogation room door. The officer was kind enough to open the door for her, though he stood for a moment, as if asking whether or not he would have to accompany her, should things get hairy. Niijima, however, shook her head before stepping inside, and the door closed behind her.

The interrogation room was dimly lit, but well enough to illuminate most of the room. It was at least slightly bigger than a cell, with steel plated walls as to prevent any...unusual attempts of escape. Like most interrogation rooms, it had a table and two chairs, each on opposing sides, but this one had an extra table and chair in the back with a computer, meant for keeping track of the interrogation.

But that's not the only thing she recognizes, as she sees the GSPO member and the suspect.

The officer in question is a man in his twenties with a normal skin tone, having short spiky black hair with an ahoge. He has a SWAT jumpsuit uniform, from her point of view has GSPO highlighted and "Tactical Unit" on the back. His front has red outlines on the right of his torso from the shoulder to his waist, while the left has a gold shield badge with an S.

"Akamine…" Niijima said, getting his attention.

Akamine, the man, turned and acknowledged her, also showing his reddish-brown eyes.

"How is he?"

"See for yourself, gave him some ice packs." Akamine turned and presented the suspect in questioning.

As suspected, Akira Kurusu is a teenager. Heavily bruised, but still alive and conscious. He has wavy unkempt black hair and dark gray eyes. What he's wearing is a school uniform, which consists of a red-buttoned black blazer with an emblem on the pocket, a white turtleneck shirt with chevron detailing on the collar and red plaid trousers.

"I didn't expect it'd be you…" Niijima said, sounding surprised and solemed at how he turned out this way. She recognizes him but has never interacted with him very much.

"That's not all." Akamine growled silently, then presented her with one of the drug syringes that Akira's been forcefully injected with. "At this state, he may as well be close to going into a coma."

"Tch… those bastards." Niijima said with disdain.

Akamine couldn't agree more with her words by crushing it, then threw it to the wall before looking at Akira.

"Akira-kun, my friends are doing what they can to help us buy more time in this questioning. Almost anything can happen in here, so we need you to answer honestly for your sake." Akamine said gently, getting a nod from the teen. That was when he went to the table at the back and sat down, now prepared to record it.

"What was your objective?" Niijima began, wanting to be the first to question him. "Why did you cause such a major incident? I didn't think it was a prank from the get-go, but I couldn't assemble a case for prosecution."

"And the methods..." Akamine interjected. "Neither my team nor Niijima could figure out the method behind it." To this day, he was still trying to wrap his head around the idea that such a thing, or a place, could even be possible.

"Of course you couldn't." Akira spoke, his voice low and raspy trying his best to project himself.

"True." Niijima gave out a small chuckle. "There's no way I could be convinced such a..."world" just by reading the reports."

_'...But we would. Except, we wouldn't have figured the out concept behind it.'_ Akamine thought. Shrugging his thoughts for the meantime, he looks at Akira seeing was cooperative. "Well, at least you're coherent." He continued, "Now then, Akira-kun, when and where did you find out about that world? How is it possible to steal a person's heart?"

"And also," Niijima spoke. "...tell us you're account from everything. Start from the very beginning."

* * *

_Akira knew he needed to tell then what they wanted to know._

_Unlike those guys from earlier, he can sense that these two can be trusted and are on the right side of the law. And as much as he wanted to tell them everything, his head was too hazy. That must mean...some parts of his own memory are missing. Either way, he needs to be strong and find a way to survive this ordeal._

_As soon as that line of thought entered his head, a small miraculous glowing blue butterfly appeared out of nowhere. He curiously stares at it wondering how it got here. But then he heard a voice..._

_"...You are held captive." It was a female's voice. He didn't know where it was coming from, but something told him that whoever this was is an ally or something like that to him. "A prisoner of fate to a future that has been sealed in advance." the voice continued. "This is truly an unjust game... Your chances of winning are almost none. But if my voice is reaching you, there may yet be a possibility open to you..."_

_'A possibility, huh...' Akira thought. _

_"...I beg you. Please overcome this game...and save the world..."_

_'The world?' questioned Akira. What did the world have anything to do with this?_

_"The key to victory lies within the memories of your bonds-the truth that you and your friends grasped. It all began that day...when the game was started half a year ago... For the sake of your world's future, as well as your own, you must remember…"_

_Akira watches the butterfly flying by his head as it disappears._

* * *

**(The Past Year)**

The casino.

It is a battleground for those who enjoy taking risks for the thrills, and where fools are only in it because they are desperate. For those who are lucky, will receive the change to improve themselves in their lives, but as for those who aren't so fortunate will pay the price. The most dedicated practice that skill, through the games that are the most difficult through the gambling hall.

Ergo, gambling is a skill through risk, intuition, and luck. Even when rigged.

Such as the current game that is being witnessed, between a man in a dark grey suit against a fat man with a mustache and bodyguards. With the latter winning multiple times at a game a roulette.

"I'm all in! Red pocket!" the man who is losing placed the last of his chips on the table.

The fat man laughed as he gave the signal to the employee who rolled the ball.

The first man had a tense look on his face as the ball began rolling while the fat man simply smirked, as a faint green squarish light appeared on his chest. Momentarily, the ball faintly glowed before landing on green ∞ pocket. That caused the losing man to have a shocked expression mixed with despair as he got on his knees.

"Now then… We'll need you to pay your bill." the fat man laughed at his losing opponent.

"I don't have any money…" the man whimpered.

"No choice then." the fat man snapped his fingers to his men. "Take him!"

Before the losing man could be taken, someone stepped up and slapped their chips on the table.

The person in question has black hair that's neatly combed, wearing a nice suit with a red dress shirt, and a red masquerade mask.

"I'm betting on any number that resembles a zero on it." the newcomer said as he sat down.

"Zero?" the fat man said while rubbing his mustache. "What are you talking about?"

"It's my first time here, but I can tell that you're always up for a challenge. If so, you wouldn't mind bending the rules here in this case. Such as the playing opponent asking what number or what kind it is, which in the end is only a higher risk." the black haired newcomer said.

"Higher risk…?" the fat man asked, only to have his smile grown at the mention of it. This would be interesting, and it would only raise his reputation even more. "Deal! But what would you be betting in return?"

"A kidney. If not, then more than that. It's your choice."

The fat man laughed as he gave his employee in charge of the ball the signal, "Very well!"

The employee nodded as she rolled the ball and spun the roulette. The atmosphere became tense as everyone in here watched the ball going along with the roulette, but then the man intervened by making his chest glow again. The ball did so too, then once again landed in the green pocket.

"I wo-"

"I win." the newcomer said, causing some confusion.

"What?" the fat man rose his eyebrow.

"Check for yourself. What does the number on the green pocket look like?" the newcomer said, pointing at the number. "True, the actual number is infinity, but how is it made visually? Sixty-six zeroes and two zeroes, like an eight if you put it sideways. If you recall, I specifically betted on anything that has a resembling zero on it; Ergo, I win. Besides, it's strange how you were constantly getting green, so it wouldn't be strange if you were the one that's cheating in the first place."

"Therefore, I made my own luck."

The fat man began to get angry and looked at the newcomer with a scowl.

"Bastard! Who are you!?"

As soon as the thugs around him were about to close in, the newcomer smirked as he grabbed a deck of cards and a lighter. Then, he lit 'em on fire before tossing every card, making them fly. Obviously in panic, the crowd backed out or ran away in fright, while it only pushed the fat owner to the ground.

The newcomer then brought out a new card with two fingers, "Here's my card."

At the moment the fat man got up, the newcomer flung the card and as it hit its' skin, the man actually inflated like a freaking balloon of all things before popping. It revealed a monster that appears to be based off of a fat yellow frog, with his tongue long and sticking out, with same colored sash things around his chest. And most of all, there's a safe on his stomach.

"GERO GERO!" the monster yelled.

"Nice to meet ya, Ganglar-san." the newcomer said in a not-so-sincere tone. "I'm taking what's in your safe now." he said, pointing at the… uh, tummy safe.

"Now I see what you are! But too bad, no one can open this safe accept me!" the monster, called a Ganglar, said proudly.

"Would you care to bet on that little 'fact'?" the newcomer, Akira, mockingly said knowing that safe will be open by his hand. The Ganglar obviously had no say in the matter, since his victory is already assured.

"Don't screw with me...!" the Ganglar, Ruretta Gerou, growled.

Hid bodyguards then transformed into humanoid creatures that wore blue boots, torso armor, and caps. They also wore red ties and gloves, and their faces are skull-like except they have a single yellow eye. These are the Porderman.

"Get him!"

Following their command, the Poderman charged at Akira who only grinned in excitement. The few that charged at him swung their blades while the others in the back took aim and fired. Akira wasn't concerned as he easily dodged the attacks performing impressive acrobatic feats. He then pulls out a white gun that has red, orange, and black decorations with a handle grip.

Firing at the Poderman, Akira charges at them as a few had managed to avoid getting shot and swung their blades at him. The young man used his gun to block each of their attacks, knocking their arms back, and then fires at them as they fell onto the floor. Shifting his focus to the ones in the far back Akira quickly dashed toward them as they fired at him, only with their efforts proving fruitless as he jumps over them taking aim.

After firing at the Poderman group beneath him they exploded once he landed. With a satisfactory smirk, he turns to face Ruretta Gerou who tightened his fists in anger.

"...Why don't you hurry up and call the ones outside? They are keeping watch, aren't they?" Akira challenged.

"Come out!" the Ganglar yelled as more Poderman came out the doors.

"Called it." Akira snickered. "Although...there aren't that many of them. Oh well, guess I'll have to finish this quickly." He shoots at the few remaining Podermen with them returning the gesture. The exchange of blasts ended when Akira jumped and wrapped his legs around a nearby Poderman's neck, grabbed said neck forcing it to take a hold of his body while spinning around.

As he spun around, Akira fired at the other Podermen shooting them down. Once that was done he placed his feet back on the ground and then flipped the Ganglar grunt over his shoulder slamming it down.

Ruretta furiously growled in anger as he tried to blast him with energy balls, but Akira reacted by jumping toward a nearby table with darts. Evading the blasts he grabs the darts then throws them at Ruretta temporarily blinding him. That brief moment was all he needed to get close to the Ganglar, as he takes out a red military aircraft-like toy placing it on the safe.

**2-0-7!**

"What!?" exclaimed Ruretta.

Akira opens the safe and pulls out a cube before kicking the Ganglar away. As more of the remaining Podermen appeared, Akira observes the cube before playfully tossing it in the air.

"So you've been using this to manipulate the probability of the game. Well, either way, I've taken your Collection Piece." the teen said as he twirled it.

"Grr…! You think you can steal my treasure and expect to get away with it!?" Ruretta growled as his grunts helped him up.

"Yes…But I wouldn't say steal, though I can't deny it, and I am proud of it. Besides, you guys stole it in the first place. What? Thought you'd be a stinking rich frog tree with this? You're better off being a simple tadpole." Akira mocked the Ganglar even further.

"A tadpole!?" the frog monster exclaimed in shock, only fueling himself with more anger. "You must have balls, you little thief!"

"Maybe."

"But if you mess with the Ganglars, you're not gonna make it out of here alive!" Ruretta shouted as he summoned more purple energy balls and threw them as hard as he can. Instead of moving out of the way, Akira welcomed it for some reason as soon as he moved his gun and toy plane devices.

***BOOM!***

An explosion occurred, breaking the wall and sending all of the money and cards flying in the air.

"Alright!" Ruretta cheered before high fiving with his grunts. "I got him boys! I-"

"Are you sure about that?"

Surprised, the Ganglar turned around as the smoke was clearing to see Akira in a new getup, and having his foot on a fallen chair.

He wore a black helmet with a red top-hat shaped visor and silver mouthpiece. He has a red cape with black shoulders and a high collar. The torso shows a red long sleeved jacket pattern with a black gap, and his arms are red equipped with red bracers and red gloves. His bottom half is black with a belt pattern around the waist, complete with a silver square-shaped buckle, and black on the legs resembling pants, with black boots and leg bracers.

Lastly, in his hand is the same gun, with the barrel is shifted to resemble a launchpad for a plane, as the toy auxiliary plane is attached to it.

"W-What!?" Ruretta gasped in shock.

"Allow me to introduce myself. I am the thief that everyone is talking about, also known as…"

***SNAP!***

"Lupin Red!" he announced as he held his gun upward in front of his face.

Lupin Red smirked underneath his helmet as he twirled his gun.

"It's Show Time!"

Ruretta and the Poderman fired at Lupin Red, who swiftly evaded the blasts, firing red energy bullets back at them. The shots had hit all of the Ganglars with each of them falling down. But the leader, Ruretta, stood back up and pulls out what looks like frog spawns.

"Die!" he shouted, throwing the spawns at Lupin Red.

Knowing this would be bad, Lupin Red managed to put some distance between himself and the frog-like spawns while shooting them. Thankfully, he had landed behind a table using it for cover. And in in the nick of time too, because they immediately exploded causing some expected property damage. Welp, that's for the owners of this place to clean up.

"Find him! Make sure he's dead!" Ruretta commanded as the Poderman ventured into the smoke screen.

That was a bad move.

As soon as they entered, multiple blasts teared through randomly hitting every direction. Ruretta panically screamed as he managed to avoid some of the random shots aimed at him. Looking at the smoke with anticipation, the Ganglar saw that it was finally clearing up and lo and behold; there stood Lupin Red carrying a red long sword in his right hand, with a black handle near the tip, and a circular closed hook beneath the hilt.

Behind him were the Poderman still as statues until they exploded. Lupin Red let out a soft chuckle while twirling his sword around before lightly placing it on his shoulder.

"Well, that took 'bout...what, eight seconds?" he playfully says.

"Y-You cocky little…! Take this!" Ruretta attempts to hit the red thief by using his tongue.

Lupin Red charges at the Ganglar while evading the tongue and closes the gap. He swung his sword three times at his opponent, making him cry in pain and falls to the ground, then he points his gun at him again. Holding the trigger, the gun's barrel begins to quickly builds up red energy…

"Forevermore…" Lupin Red releases the trigger then presses it again. A beam of red energy shoots out of the barrel hitting the Ganglar, as he explodes upon contact. "_Adieu_."

With that done, the thief in red was about to undo his transformation and get on out of here. However…

"FREEZE!"

He sighed in amusement, then turned around to see three police officers wearing SWAT jumpsuits with three different colors with guns pointed at him. In the lead, was actually Akamine with his gun carefully aimed at him. He was also holding up his ID/badge, though the teenage thief can make out that his name is Takayuki Akamine.

"You…" Takayuki growled a bit.

"Oh no, the police are here. Whatever shall I do?" Lupin Red asked sarcastically, playfully holding up his hands.

"Well for starters, you can put your weapon down and come quietly for questioning! Or we can use force to bring you in!" Takayuki warned.

"Mmm. Yeah… no. I don't do autographs, sorry." Lupin Red remarked, putting a hand on the back grip handle on his gun.

"Fine! We're bringing you in by-" he was interrupted by something when the thief twisted the barrel briefly before setting it back into its' current position.

**GET SET! READY? GO! R-R-R-RED!**

As a road appeared from the gun, Lupin Red shot it forward and the auxiliary plane on the gun to move forward on it. It was then it began to grow bigger and bigger until it was almost the same size as the room!

"Takayuki!" the girl of the team tackled him down to safety before he could be blown away.

Grabbing the cube on the floor, Lupin Red jumped onto the plane as it opened its' windows to a cockpit. He got onto his seat and looked back.

"See ya!"

With that, as the plane was about to finish growing, the thief flew that thing out of the building and into the night skies of Japan.

* * *

Cancelling his transformation, Akira stretched his arms as he cruised through the night. The fight wasn't that tough and the security was light, but at least he had a good workout... With his life a little bit on the line, but it was fun.

A ring from his phone snapped him out of his thoughts, but Akira picked it up while gently piloting this plane.

"…Yeah, I know.… Don't worry, I have the Collection Piece. Can we finish this later? I have to move soon." he said while hanging up.

With that in mind, Akira turned around and went back to his hometown...before moving to his new one.

* * *

After the entire stunt, the police and other government workers are digging through the place for anything about the scene. Takayuki found and picked up the calling card from earlier, before reading it.

**«Dear Global Special Police Organization, my apologies but I have taken what I came for. As the Ganglar crime rate rising up as usual, please be of use to me a while longer. I assure you we will be seeing each other more often. From, The Phantom Thief Lupin Red»**

…

…

…

"DAMN YOU LUPIN RED!" Takayuki comically shouted, with no one bothered, before throwing the card out in the hole in frustration.

* * *

**Hey guys! Sorry to keep ya waiting! Like I said, I'm taking a break from Kamen Rider for a while and now focusing on Super Sentai. Why? Cause it seems fun. Anyway, I know that Lupin VS Pato x P5 sounds a bit typical but… let's be real, it's awesome and I have yet to seen Akira/Ren to be Lupin Red basically but that's just trivial in comparison. Also, I couldn't have done this without Moonlight Abyss' help, thanks buddy!**

**Welp, favorite and/or review if you love it. And if you have any questions, just leave them in the reviews or PM me! Later guys!**


	2. Chapter 2

**I do not own Persona 5 or the Super Sentai series.**

* * *

**1st Heist: The Blue Prison**

**April 9, Saturday**

Akira stretched his arms as he was on a train heading toward the Shibuya district in Tokyo. He wore a black school blazer with an emblem on the left chest, red buttons, and white turtleneck underneath. And some pants with red plaid trousers. More importantly, he wore glasses to give him the appearance of an ordinary teenager.

He yawned feeling tired from the little heist he did last night. When he finally got back home, his benefactor already left and is no doubt waiting for him somewhere in Tokyo. Probably to the new place where he'll be living at. The young thief looked over at a nearby newspaper posted on the wall, presetting an article about the red Phantom Thief, Lupin Red, striking again.

No surprise there, but it was also reporting about a series of accidents that has been going on lately. There has been car accidents, hit and runs, explosions, and the works of other weird stuff too. The only possible and reasonable explanation is that most of this would be the work of Ganglars. It would make sense, given how active they're starting to become lately. After all, he has grown used to seeing a few Ganglars with odd abilities.

Hearing the announcement that the train will be arriving at Tokyo real shortly, Akira stood up and placed his bag on his shoulder. When the train stopped he and other passengers had gotten off, as he looked around before moving to the front entrance of the building; noticing that there were a lot of people further up ahead.

Makes him wonder if there are even more people at Shibuya scramble. Only one way to find out. On his way there, Akira looked through his phone and for a moment there was a police officer guarding an area with standard police tape, probably from another accident before this place. But that's none of his concern, as he shook it off and continued on with his route via navigation app. He should probably find his way to the Shibuya station relatively fast.

It was only a couple of minutes, but Akira had reached the Shibuya Scramble Crossing, and needless to say, it was a big place for someone who was not born in Tokyo. Even for Akira, and he's only reached places like this by plane when on job as Lupin Red.

"There's a lot of people here." the teen commented. Despite wanting to take in the scenery a bit longer, he sadly wasted no time and went back to his phone app to get around.

As soon as he entered the middle of the street, he stopped when he noticed an unusual icon on his phone. It was red, bearing a black insignia resembling an eye with a star inside.

_'Hmm?'_ he frowned in confusion. _'What is this? When did this get installed on my phone?'_ He doesn't recall seeing this app before. It wasn't on his screen last night, earlier this morning, and even when he was on the train. _'Could this be a software update? Or…maybe a virus that installed itself automatically?'_

He wasn't able to investigate any further, given the lack of knowledge and evidence, although this app was starting to expand itself covering up almost half of the screen. _'What the…'_

Akira tapped the now blown-up icon on his screen, though nothing happened. He was beginning to wonder if he was right about that virus thought. Either way, he getting rid of it. It was too creepy for his taste, and for all he knew, it could really mess up his phone…like right now. Sighing, he looked up and suddenly became aware that the world around him was changing.

Everything had stopped.

_'W-What!?'_ Akira widened his eyes, surprised that everything around him including the people had stopped. Quickly observing the environment around him with a keen, cautious eye he noticed that all of the cars had also stopped. Even the birds were halted in midair, as well. 'Time...really has stopped. But, why...?' Instantly, his mind had come to the assumption that it was a Ganglar who posses a time stopping ability, however it was immediately eliminated.

The reason why is because he is able to move freely in this time-frozen world. Unlike everybody and everything else, he can still move his body as he normally would, and has total awareness of what's going on around him. If this were an enemy attack, he, too, should be frozen in time and not have the awareness that he does now. Also, he and the civilians would instantly be dead if that were the case not knowing what had happened. So it's safe to say this isn't an enemy attack.

"Still..." Before he could think about it, he spots large blue flames in the distance. It shapes itself into a humanoid form as a fiery, almost blood-like, face begins to emerge making the biggest evil-like grin he has ever seen ready to wreak havoc. Then, for a short moment, he could have sworn he had seen his own face making that same exact look except his eyes were a bright yellow, his body enveloped in those flames.

Before he knew it, time had resumed.

_'Wha-?_' Baffled, Akira looks around wondering what exactly had happened. Everyone was completely frozen and now they're just moving as if nothing had happened. _'Those flames...that vision...What was that?'_ Wiping the sweat from his brow, he settled down knowing getting worked up over this won't help. After all, he has meet up with...

"Bonjour." a voice greeted.

Akira looks at the direction where the voice came from and saw that it was an elderly bald man, with white hairs on the sides, wearing a black tuxedo with white gloves and wore glasses. He stood by the Buchiko statue waiting for him.

"Kogure-san." Akira said, looking at the man.

* * *

Somewhere in a currently unnamed district, there stood Japan's Branch building of the GSPD, or better known as the Global Police. Their responsibilities are to take on special crime investigations that specifically falls into their hands, much like Interpol or the FBI, such as the Ganglar organization. It obviously hasn't been easy fighting or rather, trying to face monsters that clearly have superior skills, arsenals, and abilities beyond human comprehension. Still, they are the only police organization willing to face them. However, all they can do now is try their best and collect as much information as possible to make up for that.

At least until Lupin Red made his debut, over six months ago, taking down Ganglars left and right while stealing those mysterious antiques from their personal vaults. Even from the tactical unit.

Speaking of which, inside the tactical unit office, a wide white and blue room with two work desks on both sides, white round table to take breaks or place some stuff near the center, a small lunge on the stage left at the end from up front. At the front of the office was the superior's desk, who is out at the moment.

As for who's at the table, the person in question appears to be a woman in her early to mid twenties wearing a pink variation of what the officer, Takayuki Akamine, wore on last night's job, with shorts and black high knee stockings. Her hair is black and styled short, though neatly brushed while she has three strands standing up, and has dark blue eyes. Her name is Miyoko Sahashi.

Miyoko sighed as she stretched her arms in some relief from organizing the bullets of each gun that's on the table. It's not hard, but it's also a pain to do when when figuring out the differences between bullets and which gun they go too.

"Miyoko-senpai, good work today…" a bored sounding voice complimented.

"You seem busy yourself." Miyoko deadpanned.

"I know." the second voice said. The person in question is a male in his twenties, looking slightly younger than Miyoko, and is wearing the male uniform but with a green variation. Appearance wise, he has messy light brown hair and greenish-blue eyes. His name is Naoki Midorikawa.

He's just spending his time playing an RPG on his smartphone, and has a solar powered charging device he charged up earlier.

"You need to work, too." the girl of the group stated.

"I know, I'm working my butt off doing an event to earn me some money." Naoki poorly justified.

"In real life."

"I'm using my fingers to do so in real life."

"That's not work!" Miyoko reprimanded, getting up to get her co-worker's nose out of the game by force. She did so by karate chopping Naoki's head, much to his dismay and taking it away.

While that was happening, another person had entered the room and looked at the sight with an amused smile. This person was of African-American descent. He has short black hair that seems to grow into a fro from a buzz cut, a thick mustache, and brown eyes. He wore a grey suit with a brown and white striped tie, and has a ring on the left ring finger indicating he is married. He held up two items, a suitcase and shopping bar in each hand. His name is Samuel Hilltop, the commander of Japan's Tactical Unit.

Hilltop cleared his throat, getting his two subordinates attention. "Good work last night you two."

"Ah, Director Hilltop!" Miyoko regained her composure in panic and saluted him, also forcing Naoki to it albeit his was a bit lazy. "We're sorry that you had to see that and–"

"No, there's no need to be so stiff or formal." Hilltop laughed before offering the shopping bag. "Here, it's yokan. You'll need it for when you face Lupin Red or any Ganglar once more."

"Do we really need to worry about Lupin Red?" Naoki asked, sounding nonchalant with the not so subtle lazy tone. "Far as I know, he's been doing all of the hard work taking care of the Ganglars. Not to mention he's somehow been obtaining information on them better than we have."

As if on cue, Takayuki storms inside the room obviously in a sour and angry mood, as he approaches Naoki who reasonably sinks into his chair in fear of his senior. "Oi, Naoki! If you're saying stuff like that, you clearly must be oblivious and incompetent to the whole situation!" he started. "We have dedicated our time and energy training at the academy to defeat the Ganglar! And that also includes that Phantom Thief, as well. He cannot be trusted. After all, we don't know where he's getting his anonymous information from, possesses unknown equipment, and especially the illegal theft crime that spurs out into property damage. When he appeared half a year ago, he started to collect those artifacts, and we don't know what he intends to do with those."

"Well…okay, that may be true. But, we can't deny that he's been doing a better job than us when it comes to facing them." Naoki stated. However, as those words escaped his lips, he realized he screwed up by literally saying GSP is incompetent, which obviously p-i-s-s-e-d off Takayuki given his death stare at him.

"NAOKI!" yelled Takayuki, forcefully pulling him off his chair before suplexing him onto the ground for his 'insubordination' more or less.

No on reacted to this seeing as it happens often at times. Takayuki does love his work and strongly shows it by performing his duties with enthusiasm. Although he does make a valid point about the Phantom Thief, Lupin Red, who does have unknown motives concerning those artifacts. If they remember correctly they were called Lupin Collections.

"By the way…" spoke the GSP's robotic assistant, Jim Carter, looking at the briefcase Hilltop was carrying. "…what's inside the briefcase Commander Hilltop?"

* * *

Inside a limousine on the way to Yongen-Jaya, which is Akira's destination, the young man sat across from Kogure as he had given him the Collection Piece he obtained last night. Afterwards, it was absorbed into the page of a large red book that the older man carries. Kogure closes it and politely thanked him and complimented him on a job well done. Akira, of course, nodded in appreciation.

"Akira-kun," Kogure started. "…you will need to find two candidates to become Lupinrangers very soon. With the recent increase of Ganglar activity during this past year, I'm afraid you won't be enough to handle them yourself. You will need allies to aid you in these upcoming battles."

"Gotcha." replied Akira. He, too, knew that he can't handle all of the Ganglars by himself no matter how hard he tries. Still, him choosing who to be his allies is the best possible outcome, since he will need pick those whom he can trust. Speaking of, "If you're allowing me to pick two candidates to become Lupinrangers, does that mean you have a little trust for me?"

Since meeting the man a year ago, Akira has tried to pry some information off him in regards to his actual identity. He only knows that the Lupin Collection are treasures left behind by Arsene Lupin 100 years ago, and were stolen by the Ganglar. Sadly, he hasn't gotten very far except knowing that little tidbit of history and the fact each Collection Piece possess abilities uniquely to them. Moreover, he doesn't know how many of them there are and what their abilities are. In any case, he hopefully may have earned some trust if Kogure is allowing him to pick two candidates.

"I am grateful to you." Kogure answered.

Akira couldn't help but slightly frown a bit. He knows that Kogure means well and is good guy, however there are too many mysteries surrounding him that makes him come off as a bit untrustworthy. Well, no use pondering it for now. He doesn't have to know his entire life story; only the critical information that may benefit him later when doing his job. Hopefully the older man will reveal more this year as it progresses.

Enjoying the ride in complete silence now, Akira stared out the window taking in the new sights until they were at his destination. The limousine was parked at a secluded area, that was reasonably far from Yongen-Jaya but still within walking distance. He gets out of the vehicle and closes the door. Before he could walk to his destination, the window rolls down as he looks at Kogure.

"I know you don't need me to remind you, but you must keep a low profile considering your probation." the older man advised.

"I already understand hat." Akira replied, making sure not to let his annoyance show.

Kogure nodded, "Well then, I will see you soon." With that said, the window rolled up as the limousine took off.

Akira stared at the vehicle as it disappears into the distance. He lets out an irritable sigh trying not to let his frustration leak out at the mention of his probation. Deciding to forget about it, for the time being, he makes his way over to his destination.

* * *

Wandering through the back streets of Yongen, Akira takes in his new surroundings briefly studying all of the corners he can potentially hide in after he finishes his Phantom Thief tasks. Other than that, he is looking for the residence of the man who decided to take him in for the year. If he remembers correctly his name is Sojiro Sakura. In all honesty, he doesn't know why someone would take him in seeing that he has a criminal record now. Though if he had to guess it was probably for the money.

Akira asked the locals where he could find Sojiro Sakura's residence and they were kind enough to point him in the right direction. Once he found Sojiro Sakura's residence, thanks to both the direction and the nameplate, he rings the door bell and waited for someone to answer. However, nobody answered and was about to ring it again before sensing a pair of eyes watching him.

_'A presence.'_ he clarifies. With no change in his demeanor, he carefully looks at the direction where he was being watch from, and notices it came from the right upstairs window. He barely saw the small creak of the window curtain close, and was positive that he had seen a figure quickly duck down the moment he noticed them watching. _'So, there is someone inside.'_

"Looks like no one's home." a voice spoke.

_'I wouldn't say that.'_ Akira thought to himself before slightly turning his head to see a delivery man.

"Oh, that's right. Sakura-san is usually running the cafe around this time. Thankfully Leblanc is at the back alley, so I should take care of my other deliveries first." he mumbled to himself.

_'Is this guy an idiot.'_ he sighed. This delivery man should be careful when giving away someone's location like that. Who knows if someone with malicious intent is listening. Well, thankfully, he doesn't have such intent and needs to find this guy anyway. As he was about to head to Leblanc, he stops to look at the window before shrugging it off knowing whoever is inside must have their reasons.

In any case, he had to retrace his steps in order to find this place, not wanting to bother anyone at the moment. Akira had taken time to look around properly at each new fork path. If he had to be honest, it was a bit surprising to see so many stores that were close to each other in such a small distance, such as a small movie theater, a grocery store, a pharmacy, and even a close by pawn shop. Though it didn't look like it'll buy expensive stuff, that's for sure.

Eventually, not far from where he entered the neighborhood, Akira made a turn and saw a door red/white striped door awning sign that said "Cafe Leblanc". Seeing that, he gently opened the door, which had a welcome bell jingling when he entered the threshold.

…Akira had to admit, this place is actually not so bad as it gives off a classy feel. It was old school with a small number of booths, on the left and on the right was a bar area with a shelf of coffee beans behind it, with a small kitchen area, and a sink. There was even a TV on the other side of the room, displaying the news for the customers to see.

Speaking of customers, he noticed an old couple having coffee but there was one other person in the establishment. A middle aged man with slick, yet balding black hair and goatee, a pink dress shirt behind a green apron and a pair of light brown khakis, sitting on one of the barstools and apparently doing a crossword, if he had to guess. Akira had the feeling that this guy is the one he's looking for, but also shifted his attention on the news.

_{A public transit bus was driven down an opposing lane with its customers still in it! The citizens can't live in peace if this keeps up!}_

"Oh… how frightening." the elderly man said, voicing his own concerns.

"What could be going on? Didn't something similar happen the other day?" the elder wife added.

Apparently though, the manager here was more focused on his crossword puzzle, "Vertical is…the name of a shellfish used for farming pearls…"

"…It's clam." Akira spoke, catching the manager's attention.

"…Oh, right. They did say that was today." he said, putting the crossword on the bar table.

"We'll be going now. The payment's on the table." the elderly man said as he and his wife got up to leave.

"Thanks for coming," the manager nodded politely.

"This place is in the back alley, so there's no worries of a car crashing in here." he said with a light hearted chuckle.

"A what now?" the manager questioned the elder in surprise, catching the teen's attention.

There's been a sting of those rampage accidents for some time now. I just hope none of those happen here," the elder explained.

"Eh, it's none of my concern," the manager said nonchalantly, causing Akira to look at him bemusedly.

_'He's pretty laid back for a business owner, I'll give him that.'_ he thought while giving the elderly couple some room to leave.

"Ugh…Four hours for a single cup of joe…" the man groaned before looking at the teenager in the room. "So, you're the guy? Akira Kurusu, right?"

"I am. Please take care of me…" Akira nodded with a bow. Even if it is for the money, this guy is giving him a place to stay so at least Akira will give him some respect.

"Uh-huh. At least you got manners," The manager acknowledged as he went to introduce himself. "I'm Sojiro Sakura. You'll be in my custody over the next year."

"It's nice to meet you." he nodded with one more bow, then he thought about how a year would be so short and so long. Hopefully before it's over he would at least get along with the boss here though.

"Uh-huh, I'm not gonna lie but I was wondering what kind of unruly kid would show up, but you're the one huh?" Sojiro chuckled a bit in amusement at that fact, before getting down to business. "Have you been told? A customer of mine and your parents knew each other, and well… I guess it doesn't matter."

_'And I don't blame that guy...'_ Akira thought, not that he knew his parents acquaintance anyway. Not to mention he wasn't looking forward to recalling the little talk he and his family had regarding that fiasco of how he got his record, not to mention on how nonchalant they were about him living with a total stranger. He may not know much about parenting, but even he can tell that's poor decision making.

"Anyway, follow me." Sojiro gestured him as he walked to the stairs at the back, presumably to the attic. Now feeling curious himself, Akira followed him up the stairs close by. The moment he reached the top of the stairs, though, Akira immediately stopped, stunned by what they were witnessing.

"This is your room," Sojiro stated as he stood in the middle of the attic, the very place being what Akira could honestly have considered more of a storage area more than a bedroom. No really, it was a huge mess in here; dust floating everywhere, bags of trash and boxes scattered around the room, shelves and tables littered with books and what looked like coffee bean sacks. There's even old gasoline bottles, a heater, and even a nearly dead plant shoved off on one corner of the room, a dusty old couch that looked like it hadn't been used in years, and a pathetic excuse of a bed on the far side of the room. Not to mention this room itself also smelled like coffee.

Overall, it would've been much more nice if it was clean at its fullest.

"I'll give you sheets for the bed," Sojiro said as he turned to Akira, quirking an eyebrow when he noticed the boy's eyes at the state of the room. "You look like you wanna say something…"

"…It's cluttered." Akira plainly stated. Even he can tell that Sojiro is more responsible than what it seems, but this is a bit much. However, his mind went back to when he felt someone watching him from Sojiro's house. _'Ah, I understand. He's protecting whoever's inside that house, and doesn't want to bring any bad influences or potential harm.'_

"It's on you to clean up the rest." Sojiro said, uncaring on what the frizzy haired teen's thoughts were.

_'Of course I am…'_ Akira thoughtfully remarked, deadpan.

"I'll be leaving after I lock up each day. You'll be alone at night, but don't anything stupid. I'll throw you out if you cause any trouble." he warned.

_'Sadly for you, that's going to happen regardless. Well, not like you'll ever find out anyway.'_ Akira thought to himself as he kept listening to the older man.

"Now then…" he started, causing Akira to keep a fixed gaze on him knowing he was bringing up something else. And he wasn't going to like it. "I got the gist of your situation. You protected some woman from a man forcing himself on her, he got injured, then sued you. Right?" Goddammit. "That's what you get for sticking your nose into matters between two adults. You did injure him, yeah?"

_'I didn't!'_ Akira already felt his blood boiling at the mention of that incident. His right fist was clenched real tightly from the inside of his pocket, and was lucky that Sojiro didn't pick up on this due to keeping a straight face. But this burning feeling in his chest, however, is raging like a storm.

"…And now that you've got a criminal record, you were expelled from your high school. The courts ordered you to transfer and move out here, which your parents also approved." Again, kinda bad parenting to send your kid to go live with a complete stranger for a year. "In other words, they got rid of you for being a pain in the ass. Anyway, it's best you not talk about anything unnecessary. I am in the restaurant business, you know."

_'All in all, take my business elsewhere or keep it in the confines of this room.'_ Akira ironically thought, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. Other than that, he's starting to get real pissed off by how nonchalant this guy is making his situation sound. Whether it was intentional or not, he didn't know.

"Behave yourself for this year. If nothing happens, your probation will be lifted." he informed.

"If I remember correctly, my sentence lasts until next spring. Hence why I'm going to be here for the year." Akira relayed. He obviously knew this since this is pretty much his "punishment", even though he did nothing wrong.

"That's right. Glad you understand that." Sojiro nodded. "Anyway, cause any problems and you'll be sent straight to juvie."

Akira resisted the urge to sigh, as well. He already knew all of this so there wasn't a need for him to remind him of what the courts and his parents told him. Honestly, he just wants to go ahead and clean up whatever he can in this cluttered room and then go straight to sleep.

"We'll be going to Shujin tomorrow." Akira was snapped out of this thoughts when Sojiro said those words.

He blinked, "Shujin?" Okay, to be honest…he wasn't paying attention much in regards to what school he was going to be attending. He knew he was wearing the uniform, but that was about it. There was a lot going at the time when things were being explained to him, that he could only process so much.

"Shujin Academy—the school you'll be attending. We'll introduce ourselves properly to the staff there." the cafe owner explained. "There's rarely a place that'll except someone like you, you know. Sigh. What a waste of my Sunday."

'You and me both.' By this point, Akira was too tired and exhausted to make any more witty remarked in his head.

"Your 'luggage' arrived earlier; I left them over there." he said, referring to the box that was full of Akira's clothes and other necessities. Then, Sojiro heads back downstairs leaving him alone.

Akira waited as he heard the man grumbling to himself, obviously complaining about the situation—a sentiment in which he shared. The frizzy haired teen wasted no time releasing a heavy sigh, mentally exhausted from holding himself back and not saying anything that he may regret. But thinking about it calmly now, it does make sense for him to say those things to him; even the attitude given the fact he is protecting whoever is inside his house.

Shrugging it off, Akira put his bag down and looked around his new room. _'Better get started.'_ He begins to clean up the room.

* * *

Somewhere in a forest enshrouded by an ominous purple fog there was a mansion within the eye of it all, where the Ganglars reside. Inside a dining room decorated with black and white checker floorboard, a red carpet, chandeliers, and a dinner table filled with plates of food and three crimson candle holders. Many of the Ganglars were gathered as most were making idle chat.

"Hey, did you hear Ruretta was taken by that Phantom Thief?" one of them asked.

"Who hasn't? It's been all over the news. If I'm not mistaken, this Phantom Thief is called Lupin Red or whatever. Kind of a stupid name if you ask me…" another Ganglar said.

Those who heard the conversation or weren't busy talking to another one of their comrades laughed at the snide comment.

"Still, that was such a good casino he had too!" a snail based Ganglar complained.

"Whatever! Why're we here anyway?" one more of them asked.

The answer had came when the front doors literally opened. Those who had entered were no ordinary Ganglar like the rest of them…

The Ganglar has red organic/metallic-like body with his appearance fitting that of a major crime boss and is a man. He has crimson colored boots, gold bladed bracers on his wrists, and seems to have buzz-saw blades on his waist yet doesn't seem to hurt or bother him. He has silver clawed hands and the clothes he seems to wear are chains that acts like a robe, and a gold safe on the center of the chest bounded by them. His face is silver and monstrous with a gold beard, green eyes, and has a red bowl hat. He carried a cane, and the way he walks signifies his old age.

This is the boss of the entire Ganglar organization, Dogranio Yaboon.

"Good evening my friends, are you enjoying yourselves?" Dogranio patiently asks.

Hearing that, there were cheers among his subordinates. Couldn't blame them, either some of them really admire their boss or that they're also sucking up to him to look good, out of fear in that regard.

A couple of them approached the boss, but they were pushed back by another Ganglar. This one is also male and wore green armor obviously based off a grenade, with round pointed shoulders protruding, a gold safe on each, and two giant grenades on his belt. His head seems to be similar to a dilophosaurus' head, with a cyclops eye, with the top head being orange and having two gold antenna fins. This is Destra Majjo, Dogranio's right hand.

Dogranio nodded his head in thanks to Destra before sitting at the seat meant for the boss' position. "My friends, it has been 500 years since I united the Ganglars. We've done a lot such as killing, extortion, pillaged, made deals, and the trades. This life has been a fulfilling one, indeed. More than any man can dream of…However, I've grown weary as of late since my 999th birthday passed.

Everyone remembered that party well. It was a lot of fun, for those who had attended, as they drank and fought to their heart's content. It took a discipline move from the Boss' right hand before the entire mansion had crumbled before they partied too hard.

"That is why…" the Ganglar boss grabbed his wine glass, raising it up. "I'm going to retire, and have decided to look and choose for a rightful successor."

The Ganglars in the dining room were both in shock and excitement. Becoming the new boss meant having unlimited access to everything in mansion and confines of the land, while claiming EVERYTHING Dogranio has politically, personally, and will rule every singe territorial ground without question.

"BE QUIET!" Destra shouted, summoning a warhammer and slamming it down, thus making them back down in fear.

Dogranio cleared his throat before continuing, "Yes, well, before you all try to fight each other again for it, I will only allow a successor under one condition: Take over the Earth. Not only that, but I will give you the Collection piece I have, especially if you destroy that Lupin Red individual and those associated with him."

They went back to cheering, this time full of greed and ambition that they were letting out. Those who personally knew him or by reputation had found him to be a pain in the ass. This will be a moment that they will enjoy once they get their hands on him! Not only that but one of them will become the new boss if they did so.

"Are you sure of this Boss?" Destra asked, clearly unsure and not quite ready for him to retire yet.

"He has been a hindrance when he suddenly showed up and started taking the Collection pieces. Either way, I planned on retiring eventually." Dogranio shrugged and went back to his drink.

"I understand, Boss. He even took a slave trader where I get my experiments from." a female Ganglar said, taking a sip of her own drink. This one clearly has a woman's appearance and is more humanoid shaped, with a blue body. Her head seems to be based on an oviraptor head, but she doesn't have any eyes. She's wearing a red dress, the chest seems like it carries its own organic bullets like that of a machine gun, with her shoulders being based on the round part of a simple SMG. Her hands, mainly fingers, are based after said guns' muzzles, albeit still looking like regular hands. This is Goche Ru Medou, the mad scientist of the organization.

Unlike Destra, she doesn't mind the Boss' decision of having a new successor so long as they do not interfere wit her work, and let continue as she pleases."Well then, if you will excuse me...I must make preparations for another Ganglar." The Ganglar scientists said before walking out of the room.

* * *

**(Leblanc)**

Cleaning the attic had taken hours as it was already well into the night. Akira dusted off the corners of the windows, mopped the floors, removed any dust he found on the bed he's eventually going to sleep in, moved the organized books onto the shelf, and put his own stuff on the shelf that had the bag of coffee beans.

_'Can't believe how late it's gotten.'_ Akira looks outside to the night sky. Then he looks around the somewhat newly cleaned room. 'As much as I want to polish this place up, it's best I stop and continue for another time.'

Footsteps were heard coming up the stairs as Sojiro came into the attic and was surprised to see how different it looked. "What the? I heard you making all sorts of noise up here but I didn't think you were actually cleaning." He scans the room carefully observing everything while stroking his goatee. "Actually, the place doesn't look too bad." he gave an amused grin.

_'Thank you. I try.'_ Akira internally smirked.

"It's only natural that you'd want to keep your room tidy." Of course he wants to keep the room tidy, after all it was a total mess that he spent hours trying to fix. "Anyway, why don't you go to bed and call it a night. You don't have anything else to be doing, right? I'm going to close up shop and get out of here myself."

Akira silently nodded in reply.

"I won't be the one looking after you if you get sick from staying up too late, you got that?" he informed before heading downstairs.

The frizzy haired teen could only release a tiresome sigh with the fatigue catching up to him.

"Time to get changed." he mumbled.

* * *

Akira was lying on bed with both hands behind his head while staring at the ceiling. He had changed into a black sleeved shirt and green sweats that he got out of his box.

Now that he has a little time to himself again, he was re-evaluating the events that lead him here. To put it bluntly he was arrested, put on trial, and got a criminal record as a result which will loom over him for the rest of his life.

_'Damn brat…I'll sue!'_

That guy's voice still lingers in his head. And whenever he hears, mentally at least, he just gets a little upset because what happened that night wasn't something he could leave alone.

* * *

**_(Flashback)_**

_Akira, at the time, wore a white shirt with black sleeves and khakis while carrying his usual brown bag. It was almost curfew and he had to get back home soon._

_The streets were vacant and it was really dark out. The lampposts were oddly dimmed for some reason making it a bit difficult for him to see. Still, it wasn't bad considering he knows where to go._

_"Just get in the car!"_

_Akira stopped when he heard the slurred voice of a man._

_"Stop it!"_

_When hearing the frightful distress of woman's voice, he picked up the pace by speed walking to where he heard those voices. They were up ahead from the sounds of it._

_'Can't believe some drunken idiot is trying to force himself on a woman.' The mere thought alone made Akira want sigh or shake his head in disappointment. Honestly, this has to be the most stupidest yet easiest thing he could ever come across. All he has to do is sneak up on this guy and knock him out cold._

_Due to his training as a Phantom Thief, his footsteps were silent and knew how to mask his presence making it all the more easy to handle the situation without anyone getting hurt._

_"How dare you cross me!"_

_"Stop it! Let go of me!"_

_When physical violence was mentioned he continued to speed up. Soon he spotted a bald man wearing a suit trying to drag woman inside his car._

_"Tch…What a waste of time. You think you're worth causing me trouble? Huh!?" he snarled._

_"I'll…I'll call the police." she stammered, trying to fight him off._

_"Heh, call them if you want! The police are my b-i-t-c-h-e-s. They're not gonna take you seriously." he smugly said._

_"No…Stop…!" she whimpered._

_'Time to go to sleep.' Akira hadn't been noticed as he was about to prepare a chop to the neck. However, police sirens wailed in the distance forcing him to stop._

_"Someone called the cops, huh? Get in the car!" Once again, he tries forcing her to get inside the vehicle. "Incompetent fools like you just need to shut your mouths and follow where I steer this country." That was when he had been noticed. "…What are you looking at? Get outta my face!"_

_'Damn!' Akira internally winced knowing he had messed up._

_"This ain't a show. Get lost, kid." He focuses his attention to the woman again, glaring at her. "See? This is all because you're so damn slow! Get in the car!"_

* * *

**(Present)**

Akira could only scowl at everything that happened afterward. While it was true he had the edge on that guy, it was his own fault in the end for not knocking him out sooner. 'What the hell was I thinking? Stopping because I heard the police sirens nearby. I should've trusted my own judgement back then.'

Not wanting to dwell on it anymore, he closes his eyes trying to fall asleep. His phone then pinged as his eyes opened back up and pulled it out of his pocket to see what message he received.

_'Hmm? Ah, it's that app!'_ he realized. _'Didn't I delete this already? No, that's right…I was busy talking with Kogure-san and trying to find this place. Not to mention spending hours cleaning what I can of this room.' _He observes the app. _'Man, it really is creepy looking. Oh well, time to get rid of it.'_

He swipes the icon away and put his phone back down. His eyelids grew heavy as had fallen into slumber.

* * *

The raven haired thief opened his eyes with a gasp, as if something or someone had forced him awake. When he did, all he could see is a brilliant, vibrant blue.

_'What…? Where am I?'_ He looks around the room, noting he was in a padded cell due to the obvious blue paddings. The room itself was small, barely bigger than an apartment's kitchen or so. He was also laying on a bed made out of wood, with sheets and a pillow. When sitting up he noticed medium length chained shackles on his wrists, allowing him some mobility to move his arms, and is wearing the classic white and black stripped prison uniform.

_'…How did I get here!?'_ Akira thought, trying to get the shackles off pointlessly by instinct. He immediately came to the conclusion that he was kidnapped by a Ganglar, but it was about fifty percent. Reason why was is that he should be hearing other prisoners, and not be confined in this small space alone. If Akira wasn't in here by himself and was indeed with other prisoners—his instincts would have immediately woken him up and fought back. Although that possible outcome is still on the table.

The other reason was that he's in a lucid dream. Funny enough, this is actually the first time he has ever had a lucid dream about being in prison. Akira snapped out of his thoughts when he hears giggling, and turns to the front of the cell that was covered in chains from the outside. That was when two short people came to his view, Akira stood up and takes a step forward but stopped when hearing chains and looks down.

Great, a ball and chain. This is gonna be really annoying.

But luckily within a reasonable reach, Akira stepped toward the cell door and got a better look at the two in front, leaving him in a bit of a surprise.

They appear to be young twin girls with silver hair and yellow eyes, both wearing a black eye patch with the letter "V" over one of their eyes, mirroring each other in a way, and a blue prison guard outfit. The girl on his left has a long braid and hat with the letters "O-Y-O-O," while the right one has hair buns and a hat with the letters "X-M-R-N." On their left arms are armbands and wore matching black ties.

Leaning on the cell with both hands, and before Akira can ask, the two girls stepped aside as another person came to his view while sitting leisurely on a desk. This one is an old man with the longests nose Akira had ever seen, pointed ears and bulging, bloodshot eyes, and is wearing a black suit with white gloves. All while sporting the biggest grin one could ever had.

The old man came into eye contact with him, then spoke up in one of the welcoming gestures Akira doesn't think he'll forget.

"Trickster, welcome to my Velvet Room."

* * *

**Done! About time too, and Persona 5 The Royal is out now! Inspiration rising up!**

**Also, for those who have seen P5R in the Japanese dub and subs, and will be asking if I will include some elements in the story; I won't lie I'm kinda tempted and currently weighing my options. Because a part of me wants to do it right now, but I don't wanna spoil anything for those who have been really looking forward to it. But that doesn't mean I'm not gonna at least do it.**

**Anyway, for those who have any questions or comments, please review or give me a PM. Night guys!**


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